Fifty crossbreed gilts (Landrace, Large White and Pietrain) with 136.34±16.05 and 220 days of average weight and age, respectively, were used to evaluate diets with different crude protein levels, at the gestation period. A complete randomized blocks design, with five treatments, ten replicates and one animal per experimental unit, was used. The treatments corresponded to the diets with 10.0, 11.5, 13.0, 14.5 and 16.0% of crude protein. The weight gains of the gilts at the 90 days of the gestation period and the individual and total weight of the pigs and litter linearly increased in function of the crescent crude protein level in the diets. There was quadratic effect of the crude protein levels in the diets on the gilts dry matter consumption in the subsequent lactation period. This may be a consequence response of the crude protein level in the diets fed to the gilts at the gestation period. The highest calculated dry matter consumption was at 12.96% of crude protein. No effect of the treatments on the number of weaned pigs was observed, but it increased up to the level of 13.33% of crude protein. A linear decreasing effect was observed on the relative weight of the gilts at the weaning time of the pigs also in function of the crescent crude protein levels in the diets at the gestation period. The best crude protein level in the diets at the gestation period for gilts weighting 136,34±16.05 and with 220 days of age was 13.31% crude protein, corresponding to a dry matter consumption of 240 g of protein/day or 0.67% of lysine (12.06 g/day).
rut; consumption; weaning; nursing; litter; mortality
